


Fandom

by Lannakitty



Category: Sanctuary (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Cosplay, F/M, Humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-01-06
Updated: 2010-01-06
Packaged: 2017-10-05 21:12:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,793
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/46085
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lannakitty/pseuds/Lannakitty
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Helen. Will. Cosplay.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Fandom

**Author's Note:**

> Cute little fun drabble that turned into a short fic on its down. Season 2 AU or Future if you want to think of it that way. Requested by: [](http://liliofthevaley.livejournal.com/profile)[**liliofthevaley**](http://liliofthevaley.livejournal.com/)

The convention hall was noisy and hot. In college he'd been dragged to a couple gaming conventions with some friends, but none of them had ever been this large. Or this loud. He'd never gone to one in costume either. Will tugged at the collar of his suit and remembered why he usually went to these things dressed normally.

"A bit hot under the collar?" a warm, accented voice asked.

Magnus' breath was hot on his ear and Will could hear the amusement. He shuddered a little bit involuntarily. The crowd was noisy which necessitated this type of conversation, he reminded himself. Will leaned over to speak in Magnus' ear, catching a whiff of her perfume as he did. "Way too many layers and too many people." He hadn't been in a crowd this large in, well, ever, but the ongoing battles with the Cabal had left him a bit isolated from humanity.

"This used to be the norm, once upon a time," Helen reminded him, indicating the jacket with an elegant nod of head. She seemed completely comfortable in her outfit, which wasn't that surprising. The Victorian styled gown and coat were not original articles, but some of the jewelry she wore, Ashley had informed him, was. Apparently Helen Magnus didn't hold with costume jewelry. The jacket and skirt were a coppery fabric that made her eyes somehow more blue. Or maybe it was the subtle red she'd dyed into her hair.

Magnus caught him staring and arched a wry eyebrow.

Will grinned back and mimicked her accent. "You make a stunning Irene Adler."

Magnus smiled, eyes searching the hall before coming back to Will. "And you make a rather dashing Sherlock Holmes, if you don't mind my saying so," she complimented with a small smirk.

The crowd in front of them thinned and they both pushed forward. SciFan-Con was the largest science-fiction, fantasy and associated media genre convention in the hemisphere. Comics, games, movies, tv, books; everyone seemed to have set up shop to show the public and a carnival-like atmosphere. Thousands of people were dressed in costume as they were, thousands more were wearing normal clothing. The press of people was dizzying.

"Did you know her?" Will asked as they moved through the crowd. He kept his eyes scanning the rather...colorful crowd for the abnormal they were looking for. He was curious and light conversations like these happened less often now than when he'd first joined her household. This was a much-needed pressure valve in his opinion.

"Who?" Magnus asked as she eyed a trio of women who were carrying huge swords and wearing tiny chainmail bikinis.

"Irene Adler," Will replied looking at the women. Inverse law of fantasy armor indeed. "That is if she existed?" Will lifted an curious eyebrow.

Magnus smiled enigmatically then turned back to the crowd. "I had that pleasure once. Hmm." She eyed a group of people in Victorian garb and pursed her lips.

Will followed her line of sight and smirked. The group were steampunk costumers. There was a whole crew of air-ship pirates, a couple adventurers and some who didn't seem to fill any role but nevertheless wore a great deal of earth-toned fabrics and brass. "Not a fan?"

Helen gave him a mock dirty look. "Posers," she stated then elegantly moved off in another direction.

They were on a timeline. No one liked to be away from the safety of the Sanctuary Network's havens for long. While wounded, the Cabal was still a threat and unlikely to be anything else in the near future.

Will chuckled and hurried after her. "Think any of the others are having any luck?" Druitt was here as well as Kate, Ashley and Henry.

The abnormal they were looking for, was hiding in plain sight in the convention. At first Will had been reluctant to go with Henry's idea that they dress up for the mission, but Magnus had agreed. Seeing the crowd, Will was glad they had; they didn't stand out at all. There were elves, wizards, Klingons, Jedi, dragons, demons, vulcans, X-Men, half a dozen Dr. Horribles and more Anime characters than Will thought existed. Not only did they blend in, even a minimal amount of disguise helped them to avoid unwanted attention.

Will nearly ran into Helen when she stopped suddenly. "Oh my," she chuckled.

Will looked around her shoulder and laughed quietly, least he be heard. Henry was dressed as Lucian, a werewolf from the movie Underworld. He'd somehow convinced Ashley she should go as Selene, the vampire warrior from the same movie series. Their costumes were good; enough there was a line of people waiting to take pictures. Henry looked a little overwhelmed as a woman threw her arm around his shoulders while her friend took a photo. Ashley looked torn between being amused at Henry's reaction and annoyed with the endless line of fanboys who kept snapping photos.

"Now that's ironic." Will grinned and wondered if he could pull out his phone to take a few pictures himself. He looked back at Magnus.

Helen smiled softly as she watched them deal with the crowd. "A werewolf and a vampire portraying a werewolf and a vampire? A little."

"We should go get a picture," Will suggested, wagging his eyebrows.

He knew she was still anxious over Ashley, and after what they'd both been through Will couldn't blame her. Helen's natural instinct was to wrap Ashley in layers of protection and keep her home in a safe place. Ultimately she'd realized that wasn't healthy for her daughter. She hated letting Ashley back on missions now that Will had finally cleared her for light duty, but Ashley needed to take an active role so Helen had let her. It was still a work in progress and not without it's own bumps, but Will was proud of how they were helping one another.

Helen shook her head, lips quirking in a fond smile. "No. I don't want either of them to think I don't trust them in the field."

Will offered his arm and led her in the direction of the large rooms which held some of the panels. The Abnormal they were looking for was apparently an avid gamer and a number of panels were being held today. "Do you?" He asked after they'd crossed the boisterous Wormhole X-Treme booth.

"Not while we have a task to complete," Helen gently chastised before changing the topic. "Alexander's talents are rare and strong despite his youth. I promised his mother I'd find him and give him a safe place. I will not go back on that promise."

"If you didn't trust them, why let them come?"

Helen looked over and scowled at him then resumed scanning the crowd. "You won't let this go, will you." It was more a statement than a question.

"You don't keep me around so I can let things go, Magnus."

The small conceding snort wasn't elegant by any stretch of the imagination, but it was very human. For all her knowledge and experience, Helen Magnus _was_ only human. Will found comfort in that fact; it made her more real. "So?" He steered her down one of the side halls and the noise of the crowd was dulled by the walls of the panel rooms. He looked around for someone around 5'11" with dark hair who'd dressed as an elf. His parents were pretty sure he wasn't walking around as a Vulcan.

"Yes and no." Magnus sighed and Will felt her relax slightly. "I don't want to lose her again," she finally admitted. "Every day I worry she'll relapse, that they'll have devised a weapon against her much as we did, that what happened before will happen again, that suddenly all the abilities she's gained will go away and she'll be taken or worse." She looked away, ostensibly to check the group of people coming down the hall, but Will could see her eyes were watery.

"Reasonable fears," Will assured her. They'd discussed some of this before and he imagined it would be a long time before Magnus would be able to fully lay them to rest. He leaned around to take a quick look at the room full of people at some kind of panel. One of the comic book ones judging by the costumes in the crowd.

"I know that Henry is far more capable and confidant than he was a year ago. I know that Ashley needs to do this to help heal, and that she's far more capable and deadly than she was before. And more cautious."

Will squeezed her arm. "But telling your heart what your head knows isn't working out so well." He knew she felt guilty for a lifetime of indulging Ashley's penchant for reckless behavior. He'd tried to get her to realize she simply wouldn't be Ashley if she weren't right at the edge and Magnus had done all she could by preparing and teaching her daughter.

Magnus nodded. "I was afraid she'd never want to leave the house again." She smiled ruefully and began walking again, eyes searching everywhere but Will's direction. "But I was also afraid that she would. I don't know which scared me more."

"She needs to fight. She's a," Will paused, looking for a word that fit. "She's a warrior."

"No doubt something from John," she commented bitterly.

"No," Will disagreed, "I think that's from you."

Helen gave him a disbelieving look and Will took her arm again. He causally led them on a circuit past all the open panel rooms, scanning the crowds inside and all the groups of costumers as they walked by. "You went to Oxford and took classes before they were willing to fully admit women. I don't even have a reference for the kind of courage that took. _Society_ was against you, but you did it anyway."

He looked over at her, catching her eyes. "Do you know how many people you've saved over the years? How many folks got another chance because you stepped in and gave them a home or a purpose or even just a place to spend some time to get back on their feet and face the world?"

"You make it seem like some kind of one-woman crusade. Don't romanticize it. I had help. Hundreds of colleagues and friends over the years. My father's plans, ideas from James, even Nikola." She laughed once. "Plain dumb luck for some of it."

Will shook his head. "You did it because it was right and people followed. Would some of them have made the world a better place for everyone to live in it without you? Maybe. Maybe not. Ultimately it doesn't matter because you stepped up to the challenge."

Magnus pressed her lips into a line but didn't say anything. Instead she kept her surveillance of the convention hall.

"You fought to create a global network because helping the people in London wasn't enough." Will pulled her to a stop. "The bad guys spent the better part of _two decades_ planning and researching how to try to take you down. They stabbed you in the heart, thinking it would take you out of the fight, but you know what? You never stopped fighting."

"Will,"

"They tried to take everything from you, and you fought them tooth and claw." Will shook his head. "It's inspiring. That's the example Ashley's trying to live up to. She's not the only one."

Magnus looked away, surreptitiously wiping her cheek. "I never tried to be some kind of general, or warrior as you say. I just wanted to do what was right for all of us, regular and abnormal."

"And that's the really inspiring part."

Magnus' phone rang, breaking the moment. Will casually took up a spot observing the crowd while she answered.

"Yo, Boss!" Kate was yelling into her cell over the noise of the convention hall, loud enough Will could hear and that Magnus pulled the phone away from her ear. "Blondie and Fido are caught in a crowd but they gave me a heads up. I found our boy. I need some backup."

"Good work." Will caught a smile from Magnus out of the corner of his eye. "Where are you?"

"Uhh, by Booth 5347. The booth babes are dressed up like extras out of Mad Max."

"We're on our way. Keep an eye on him."

"On it."

Magnus quickly called the cell Druitt was using then nodded at Will. Will pushed away from the wall, falling into step with Magnus as they dove back into the crowd. The booth they were looking for was more than a football field away, Will realized as he looked at the numbering. They eased their away along, pushing through the crowd which got thicker by the larger booths with companies giving out swag or who had actors signing autographs. Will lost sight of Magnus somewhere around the Brutal Legend II booth. Someone caught his elbow and Will looked up, taking half a second to recognize Ashley in the brunette wig.

"Finally got away from the fanboys?" he teased as they pushed their way through the crowd.

Ashley rolled her eyes. "Finally."

Will noticed she kept scanning the crowd and the tense set of her shoulders. She wasn't comfortable here, but she was dealing with it. He nodded and began looking for the booth numbers again. He pointed at the banner hanging from the ceiling.

"We're headed there."

Ashley nodded and stalked forward, face intent on the goal. The crowd seemed to part in front of her and Will sped up so he could follow in her wake. A couple brave fanboys tried to flag her down for a picture, but Will caught them shrinking back at the last moment and dodging to get out of her way.

A tall, bald man in a black suit and red tie slid out of the crowd and joined them. Ashley stopped and eyed Druitt. "That's your costume?" her lips quirked into a small, bemused smile.

Druitt blinked in surprise, then his eyes narrowed. "I was told this would be appropriate for the venue. Remind me to beat your technician." He moved ahead of them and Will could see that a bar code had been painted on the back of his head. While Will wasn't familiar with this character, Ashley appeared to be.

Ashley smirked. "Beats him going as himself," she muttered, but Will could see her eyes sparkle in amusement. Taunting Jack the Ripper wasn't a smart idea, but Will suspected Henry had done so for this reaction. Of them all, he was still the best at getting Ashley to relax and laugh.

"Who is he dressed as?" Will asked, curious.

"A hitman from a video game series. There they are." Ashley nodded and Will followed her line of sight and saw Magnus escorting a tall elf away from a group of armored fantasy cosplayers.

They pushed through the crowd and found a secluded area. Magnus was there with Henry and Kate, who'd dressed in black pants, a white shirt, black tie and an olive green Eisenhower jacket. Will didn't recognize the costume but Ashley and Henry had found it hilarious and were calling her "Dubby."

Druitt gave Henry a scathing look and took the elf back home in a flash of light. He was actually a healer, a rare skill among his people and extremely valuable, so he was taken home first.

Ashley put one hand on Henry's shoulder, the other on Kate's, and the three disappeared in a flash.

"Not bad," Will mused, watching the crowd from their covert position.

Helen nodded. "You'll forgive me if I don't relax until we're home."

Druitt appeared and suddenly Will was moving through space even though he was sure he wasn't and then the floor slammed up under his feet. He swayed a little bit. Beside him, Magnus took a moment, then began to relax, the grip on her prop clutch easing bit by bit.

Will lightly touched her elbow. "See? We'll be okay."

Magnus looked over at him for a second then nodded slowly.

An angry sounding scuffle drew their attention. Druitt was glaring at Henry who was a heartbeat away from running. Ashley and Kate had stepped in between Druitt and the technician, Kate with a gun at the ready and Ashley with red eyes and claws.

"Think maybe we should stop the girls from killing him?" Will mused, half joking.

That earned a small laugh from Helen. "Probably wise," Helen said, leading the way.

~fin

Druitt's costume - [From Hitman, Agent 47](http://cache.kotaku.com/images/2006/05/hitman_front.jpg)  
Will's Costume - [Sherlock Holmes](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherlock_Holmes)  
Helen's Costume - [Irena Adler](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irene_Adler)  
Ashley's Costume - [Selene from Underworld](http://www.abbyshot.com/newsletters/photos/sugg-selene.jpg)  
Henry's Costume - [Lucian from Underworld](http://justpressplay.today.com/files/2009/08/lucian_smile.jpg)  
Kate's costume - [Wendy Watson](http://thatcostumegirl.com/gallery/d/2434-1/Middleman-wendy.jpg) from The Middleman


End file.
